When a mobile material is to be applied to only one of two adjacent or contiguous surfaces, a virtually universal concern is to protect the other surface against contamination by the material. Painting or staining of the baseboard on a wall, while avoiding accidental application of the paint or stain to the floor or floor covering through inadvertent brush contact, dripping, or the like, is a prime example of the problem—but is hardly the only circumstance in which it is encountered. It is to be understood to references herein to baseboards, floors, and floor coverings are made for convenience and are non-limiting, and that the shield and method described and claimed can be used and applied for any suitable purpose, as will be evident to those skilled in the art.
When painting the baseboard in a room, a common means for protecting the adjacent floor surface employs a hand-held shielding device or tool. Such devices are typically made from aluminum or plastic, and are comprised of a panel having at least one straight edge portion that can be pressed against the baseboard with the main portion of the shield overlying the adjacent floor or floor covering. Representative or prior art disclosing shielding devices of that general character and intended for such use are the following United States published patent documents:
U.S. Pat. No. 3,633,542U.S. Pat. No. 3,693,589U.S. Pat. No. 4,051,808U.S. Pat. No. 4,248,914U.S. Pat. No. 4,357,898U.S. Pat. No. 4,443,283U.S. Pat. No. 4,791,007U.S. Pat. No. 4,962,722U.S. Pat. No. 6,808,794No. 2010/0075051
A major drawback inherent in paint shields of the prior art resides in their relative shortness (typically being about 12 to 18 inches long, as measured along the blade or straight-edge portion), necessitating their frequent repositioning. That procedure is not only inconvenient, awkward, and time-consuming, but moreover it requires the exercise of constant care in placement of the blade against the baseboard; and even then the flooring or floor covering is exposed to paint encroachment and contact as a result of running or dripping of paint or spring-back of the pile of an adjacent (e.g., wall-to-wall) carpet in an area from which the shield has been displaced. Furthermore, if the shield is left in place until the paint is at least semi-dry, adhesion to the shield may cause paint to pull away from the surface.
Some of the foregoing drawbacks inherent in conventional paint shields can be avoided through the use of masking or “painting” tape or, indeed, by simply laying sheets of paper or plastic, or a tarpaulin, edgewise along the baseboard. Again, however, the application of tape is time-consuming, inconvenient, not entirely effective, and impractical under some circumstances; moreover, tape wedged into a gap is likely to tear upon removal and give rise to obvious undesirable consequences. By the same token, unsecured sheets of paper, plastic, and the like are readily distorted and displaced, and are difficult to position so as to provide and maintain accurate lines of demarcation between objective and protected surfaces.
Accordingly, it is a broad object of the invention to provide a shield unit which is effective for the protection of a surface against the accidental application of a mobile material that is intentionally applied to an adjacent objective surface.
A related object of the invention is to provide a product for conveniently supplying such shield units in selectively variable lengths.
Additional related objects are to provide a protective method that utilizes such shield units, and a method for supplying them.
More specific objects of the invention are to provide a shield unit having the foregoing features and advantages, which is facile, fast, and convenient to employ, enables significant job-time reduction, is of incomplex construction and inexpensive manufacture, and is essentially suited for one-time, throw-away use.